Learning to Live
by imjolove
Summary: The war was won, but sometimes living can be the one you loose.


**Author's Note**

This is my first piece of creative writing in what seems like forever! So please be gentle with me until I get back into the hang of it. Anyway, it's rated M due to the language and themes that will be developed throughout the piece, and yes, Ron is in it! He turns up in Chapter two and will from then on be a main character, hence why he's mentioned.

... I think that's it? So please review etc. and be nice! Hope you enjoy it.

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**Chapter One**

Word Count - 1663

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Draco sat down at the laptop was arranged before him on the dark walnut desk and began to type. If he was honest he wasn't sure how the muggle contraception actually worked, but thumping the keys and seeing the words appear on the screen not only made him feel better, but it was almost like magic.

He was stuck in the stupid law office as a punishment, punishment for being a "Death Eater" as they had called him once the war was over. The so-called Boy Who Had Lived may have won that war but Draco was loosing this one. "Live like a muggle for six months," they said, "then come back and say what you did was right." The blundering idiots couldn't even see that he had never been nor intended to be a Death Eater, could they not see that it had been Snape who had killed Dmbledore and not him? But no, it had been his fault. He had let the Death Eaters into Hogwarts and now the deaths from either side had been down to him. He had been lucky not to have been sent to Azkaban, still, it didn't mean he had to enjoy the stupid six months.

Still wallowing in his self-pity Draco failed to notice the fire in his office turning a bright green colour, however, once the figure of a young woman started to appear he began to take notice. He quickly closed his laptop, leaving it to enter it's hibernation mode and locked the door with his wand, before returning his attention back to the fire. By now, Hermione Granger had appeared in his office, clipboard and all.

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For a moment both were silent as Hermione took in her new surroundings before she spoke.

"I trust you are well then Draco?"

"What do you bloody think I am, Granger? You throw away any rights I have and leave me to die in the muggle world? Don't you know who I am? I am Draco Malfoy - "

"I know exactly who you are, and if you think that your father is going to get you out of this one then you're wrong. He was given the dementor's kiss just this morning I believe. Though I won't pretend it isn't nice that you've finally learnt my name rather than 'mud blood', much more pleasant."

Though by then Draco had stopped listening. His father had been giving the dementor's kiss, his father. As he struggled to take in the shocking news, he felt his feet give way and for a moment he felt as if he was back on his broom; flying. Then he body collided with the floor and he knew no more of what happened next.

As Draco fell to the ground Hermione had in turn ran to catch him, however, she was too late. His body crash landed on the floor and as his face fell into the wooden desk there was an explosion of blood rising from his nose.

The next moment Hermione was standing over him and managed to roll him over the best she could onto the floor and cleaned his nose with her wand. Once satisfied that her quick magic job could rival the best plastic surgeon she set about trying to bring him round.

Oh God, why had she mentioned his father like that? She knew that he wouldn't have known, there had been no way he could have known, he had had no contact with the wizarding world in two weeks. The poor guy finding out about his own father like that and it was her own fault. Her fault, she had never used those two words before, but here she was … crying over Draco Malfoy? The boy that used to taunt her in school by ridiculing her with insults such as "Mudblood" and also the boy, who had, in a round about way been responsible for Dumbledore's death. She knew she shouldn't cry over him, but there was something just so pitiful about him, something that made you notice just how much of a family he lacked.

She felt sorry for him. Hermione Granger felt sorry for Draco Malfoy. What was happening to her?

As she worked she began to worry that maybe when Draco had hit his head there had been some internal bleeding, due to the fact that the damn boy just wouldn't wake up. She tried every healing spell she knew until she was pretty sure she had accidentally killed him when, when finally, he opened his eyes. Slowly at first, but then he looked in shock.

"My-my father can not have been given the dementor's kiss, he just can't have been…" he trailed aimlessly on, not even recognising the words he was saying.

"I'm just so sorry, but he has been -" here, Hermione took a moment to wipe a passing tear from her eyes before carrying on, "- and I, and I shouldn't have told you like that, but that's why I'm here. You've been given permission to go home and grieve for two weeks with your family."

"My father has been given the dementor's kiss which no one thought to warn me about and you, you want me to go home and GRIEVE FOR TWO FUCKING WEEKS? What, you want me to pretend it never fucking happened? IS THAT WHAT YOU BLOODY WANT GRANGER? You want me to skip all the way home while holding your hand through daisies, well come on then, don't stand crying. Wait, WHY ARE YOU CRYING? HE'S MY FATHER!"

"Don't you dare shout at me Malfoy. You know, if your family actually had any morals then neither your father nor you would be in this position. So, unless you wish to skip your two weeks off and carry on life as a muggle then I suggest you start being civil to me before I floo myself out of here without you!"

Even though she was right, and Draco had known that siding with Voldemort had been a bad idea from the start it didn't make the words any less painful. He wanted to shout at her because he couldn't shout at himself, he wanted to tear every inch of his skin from his bone, he simply wanted to die. He couldn't take life anymore, everything he seemed to do was wrong.

The only time Draco had ever felt alive was when his father had been proud of him, and though that had never been often - in fact, it was near impossible to ever get his attention - there had always been the chance of making him proud one day. Now, he finally knew that he would never get the father he had always hoped for, and it hurt.

Though he longed for someone to talk to, someone to finally understand his pain he knew that he would not be able to convey it to Hermione and if he were her, then he wouldn't have cared about himself either. So instead he answered her with a kurt nod and apology.

Hermione was, at first, tempted to make him apologise in full instead of the curt "sorry" she received, but then she noticed that his once cold grey eyes were now littered with tears. The poor boy had never looked so pathetic in his life, in his muggle clothing and tears falling down around his face it was clear that he was no longer the boy that had taunted her so merciless.

She wished that she could take the boy straight back to his family home and mother, but unfortunally Ministry rules meant that he were to spend his first two days in a safe house with her and two other aurous in case he tried to escape, or did something stupid to himself. When she had first heard the rules she had laughed along with her colleagues, Malfoy do something stupid to himself? Surely that would damage his precious hair, but now she could honestly imagine him.

"Erm, Draco. I'm not how to say this to you, but, uh -" she looked across to where Draco was no sitting on the edge of his desk. With his too pale hair and gaunt skin he looked no more than twelve "- I'm afraid you can't go straight home. Due to rules that the Ministry have set in place you will have to stay in a safe with myself and two of my colleagues for two days first. I hope you understand."

"Yeah, whatever," still partly in shock from the understanding that his father was no more Draco was no longer paying any real attention towards what Hermione was saying. He simply wanted to be gone, it didn't matter where he'd end up, he just wanted gone.

"Now, uh, here's the awkward bit. The only two colleagues that were available for the next two days are erm… some people you may remember. They are, erm, Ron Wealsey and Harry Potter."

Expecting him to fly off the handle about who would be watching him for the next two days Hermione had braced herself, but instead there was silence. Complete and utter silence, it was like Draco had never heard her.

"Draco, did you hear me? I said -"

"Yeah, I know what you said. Weasel and Potty will be with you. Fine. Whatever, just, can we go now?"

"Er, sure? I guess?"

Draco slowly lifted himself off the table using his hands, careful enough so that if he were to faint again he'd be able to catch himself, but not enough that Hermione noticed. Instead she stood next to fire waiting for him to join her, which he did once he had managed the walk across the large office.

As they began to whirl around in the fire, Draco took one last look at the office he had only been in for one week before the taste of sick began to creep up his throat.


End file.
